Supreme Court judgment: Akwa Ibom APC kicks, asks Buhari to probe ruling

DENNIS UDOMA, Uyo

Stakeholders of the All Progressives Congress (APC), in Akwa Ibom state rose from a one day meeting in Uyo Friday, to reject the Supreme Court judgment which declared Mr. Udom Emmanuel of the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, winner of the April governorship election in the state.

The elders, after exhaustive review of the apex court’s decision described the ruling as a dangerous act of political advocacy that completely ignores the uncontested and overwhelming evidence of the petitioners (Umana Umana and APC) at the Tribunal that, there was no valid election in 18 of the 31 local government areas of the state.

A communiqué issued to newsmen at the end of the parley and read by the APC Publicity Secretary, Engr. Ita Awak, declared the judgment as weird, arbitrary and an inexplicable endorsement of violence and electoral fraud that was procured by the use of state power and resources for evil ends.

According to him, “We want to put on record our utter rejection of the judgment of the Supreme Court on the PDP appeal against the victory of the APC at the Court of Appeal in the state governorship election petition. We believe that the judgment of the Supreme Court is devoid of reason, logic and depth.

“The Supreme Court judgment is a dangerous act of political advocacy that completely ignores the uncontested and overwhelming evidence of the petitioners (Umana Okon Umana and APC) at the Tribunal which had held that the petitioner had proved that there was no valid election in 18 of the 31 location government areas in the state.

“The Supreme Court equally rejected the findings of the Court of Appeal that established, based on over 340 documentary evidences and 50 witnesses, that there was no valid governorship election in all of the 31 LGAs in Akwa Ibom State on 11 April 2015.

“Some of the evidences tendered by the petitioners, on which the Tribunal and Appeal Court based their decisions include: Mutilation of ballot papers and result sheets; Lack of collation; over voting; signing of multiple result sheets by one agent and result sheets signed by people who were not agents.

“In addition to these evidences, our candidate and party had also tendered the reports of the United States Embassy; European Union; Nigerian Civil Society organizations and the Nigerian Security and Civil Defense Corp (NSCDC), which stated that the governorship election in Akwa Ibom State was marred by widespread irregularities and violence.
“Nigerians should then ask the Supreme Court how it reached its findings that Udom Emmanuel was lawfully returned in spite of these glaring evidences of over-voting and other mind-boggling irregularities.

The Elders and stakeholders therefore, called on President Muhammadu Buhari to probe the judgement of Akwa Ibom State Governorship Election Appeal at the Supreme Court by instituting an inquiry into the various and widely held notion that, the Supreme Court judgment was procured through huge financial inducements.

According to them, “Such inquiry is inevitable to address the possible consequences of the Supreme Court judgment, which are bound to encourage resort to self help, violence and all forms of illegality and barbarity in the quest for power, against the desire of the present administration to weed out corruption in the country.”